The Abominable Pooch
by Gurubiness
Summary: Every child needs at least one pet in their younger years, be it a goldfish from the fair that dies in two days or a puppy. Rinku finds a stray dog and adopts it. Problem is... man's best friend isn't all too friendly. R
1. Chapter I

_Well… This idea came up when discussing a fish I was going to give Jin with Lizzy (it's name was going to be Mini-Jin, which sounds horribly wrong!). Then we somehow got on the topic of my Pap-pap's evil bitch (literally a bitch)! And a bird for Shishi, which also sounds wrong. Yeah. So! Here it is! I know it's a little too soon to be posting again, but whatever! Here ye go! Moral of this story early: All little kids need at least one pet within their lifetime. _

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The sun was shining brightly. The birds were singing beautifully. The river by the dojo prattled blissfully, and the koi fish within it swam gleefully. The wind danced and played in the yard, carrying the sweet scent of flowers with it. A bird sat on a tree branch, and began to sing. It was a beautiful sparrow, its breast ruby red. Its song was soothing to the ear. And then… **SPLAT! **Death by yo-yo!

The tree fell over, too.

Rinku's yo-yo's flew through the air, knocking over several different things. He had been out here for two hours or so, training, or simply whacking things with his yo-yo's, coming up with new tricks. A dragonfly fluttered by innocently, its wings flapping rapidly. A wooden yo-yo chased after it almost instantly.

"No, not again! Damnit!" The yo-yo flew through the air at a rapid speed, making a whooshing noise as it soared. It was an impressive fling, and inflicted a lot of damage to the environment, and killed the dragonfly as it had set out to do. Rinku would've been very smug with himself for making such a throw, if only the yo-yo were still on the string.

Farther and farther it flew, out of eye-sight completely. It soared far over Rinku's head, into the forest not too far away. He chased after it frantically, determined to catch the wooden toy. Rinku considered this particular yo-yo one of his best. It fought well, moved along the string smoothly, hit hard. But no longer was this a fantastic weapon, not the perfect yo-yo anymore, because now it was simply a wooden spool.

Rinku ran fast, the string still wrapped around his finger, flowing freely in the wind as an emancipated twine. O, how the string loved being released from the spool, how it loved the wind in its threads! It was so peaceful, so rare! It was an old string, and it had only felt such gayety and freedom and serenity once, and it was when it had been a new string, young and white as snow, only recently wound together were its threads then. Rinku had made this old and decrepit string very happy in its later life, the end of its stringy existence. But it made the poor string sad, and it missed its old owner, and its maker. It remembered how it came to be Rinku's yo-yo string. It remembered all people before this little demon, 'the good ol' days.' Ah, but that is a different story entirely.

The forest was deep, stretching for miles on end. They were very easy to get lost in, and many have come to find that out. Tall pines surrounded Rinku as he ran through the edge of the forest closest to the dojo. They towered over the small demon, making him feel even minuter than he already was. Bushes scratched at his bare arms, tore at his clothes. Mud clung to his white sneakers, speckling the laces a dark shade of brown. The yo-yo which he diligently chased finally began to lower closer to the ground. Rinku knocked the grabbing bushes out of his way, following the fleeing yo-yo at a faster pace.

It was only a few yards off when it hit the upcoming bushes. They rustled and twigs could be heard breaking. A yelp sounded from inside of the high and untrimmed brush instantaneously as Rinku reached them. The fall of the yo-yo to the ground sounded, and a whimper soon afterwards. Rinku stopped dead in his tracks, assuming a horse stance, ready for any type of battle that fall upon him. A sniffing sound could be heard, then scraping on the earth. The yo-yo rolled out timidly from under the bushes, languid in speed. Rinku grinned and reached down.

"Hey, my yo-yo! Awesome!"

Rinku fingers wrapped around the smooth wooden spool, eyes fixed on it, knee to the ground. With his free hand pressed to the dry earth he pushed himself back up to stand in a loose position. Smiling still, he pocketed the yo-yo, as well as the poor old string mentioned before. Breaking the locked stare at the yo-yo, Rinku looked up ahead of him. A low growling could be heard now, which Rinku had not noticed before, from within the wild brush. A look of fear and confusion, mixed with a bit of childish curiosity, spead across Rinku's face.

He stepped back a little, a little further, and tripped on a rock sticking out of the ground. Rinku fell backwards, ripping his shirt and pants, scraping up his hands. The growling got louder, more frightening.

Suddenly, from within the bushes, a dog bound out, jumping high, and landed on top of Rinku, teeth bared. It was a ragtag dog, with tan matted fur. The dog was rather small, maybe about as tall as the average eight-year-old if standing on its hind legs. Brown eyes, black dots that looked something like eyebrows above them; a black nose, with a pink spot on its tip. The dog had a long snout, long whiskers sprouting forth from its cheeks. Its claws were sharp and long, pressed against Rinku's chest. Brown eyes locked with blue-green eyes. The dog growled again, baring its yellowing teeth further. Rinku gasped. The dog leaned down and sniffed Rinku's neck as the small boy looked away from the mangy mutt.

Slowly, Rinku began to reach in his pocket. Feeling around, his fingers fell upon a round, tin foil wrapped dome. He languidly pulled his hand out, of his pocket, his fingers working to pull of the wrapper as he did. He moved his hand up in front of the dog's snout, revealing to him the unexpected Reeses' Cup. The dog sniffed it cautiously, and then licked at it in Rinku's hand. The boy smiled hopefully. With a swift grab with its teeth, the dog snatched the candy from the child's hand, eating it hastily. It looked at Rinku expectedly, and Rinku wriggled beneath it. The dog soon leaped off of Rinku, who sat up straight and began emptying his pockets for the dog, looking for any other foods the dog could eat instead of him.

This stray, skinny, tattered dog was overjoyed by the ample candy that inhabited the small boy's pockets. The dog had Reeses' Cups, Everlasting Gobstoppers, M&M's, Skittles, and Milk Duds. After Rinku's pockets were void, and the dog's temper dwindled down, and the dog's feast completed, Rinku stood up to leave. The dog still licked the ground for anything he might have missed. Rinku stuck his hand out for the dog to sniff. Sheepishly it looked up, stuck its snout to the boy's hand and licked it lovingly. Rinku smiled and pet the dog on the head, scratching its ears a little.

"Bye, doggie. Maybe I'll see you next time I lose a yo-yo, right?" Rinku laughed as he spoke to the dog sweetly. It looked at him with doleful eyes, tongue hanging loose, tail wagging. Rinku grinned at the dog as he began to walk away. What appeared as a smile on the dog's face soon faded as Rinku strode farther from the animal.

Rinku's arms rested inside his empty pockets, his stride bold. The boy whistled a tune as he walked back to the dojo. Soon he heard a stalking noise, a ruffling of the leaves on the ground. Rinku spun round only to see the dog following him. He smiled, then sighed.

He walked over to the dog, whose eyes lit up with glee, and pet it on the head lovingly.

"I'm sorry, bud, but you can't come with me!" The dog looked at him, melancholy, pleading. Rinku's heart melted. This poor thing, all alone in the woods, starving, no one to love him, no one to pet him, flea-ridden and impoverished. Rinku sighed and hugged the dog. He pet it on its head again sadly, empathetically, and he walked away again, sadder this time than before, slower, half-hoping the dog would walk at his side. The mutt stood as Rinku made his trip back home. It wagged its tail and took some paces forward, sniffing Rinku's trail.

"Can't wait to tell Chuu 'bout the puppy I found! Haha! Sucks I can't keep 'im, though…" Rinku spoke to himself as he walked back into the dojo garden, where he had been training earlier. He sighed, happy to be out of the woods. He thought of the dog once more, sorry that it had such a sad life.

Rinku opened the back door of the house and walked inside, stepping into the kitchen. Shishiwakumaru, Jin, and Suzuki sat round the table, playing a game of cards. Shishi's face was contorted in rage; Rinku figured he was losing. Beyond the open doors, Chuu's leg could be seen hanging off of the arm of the chair. The TV channels changed, second by second, a faint clicking coming from Chuu's comfortable chair in the corner. Touya was curled up on the couch; a paperback novel was held close to his face, free arm clutching the couch's matching throw pillow.

"Hey, guys, I'm home...!" Rinku sounded happily.

"From the backyard…?" Suzuki asked in a monotone voice. Rinku furrowed his brow.

"I was in the woods, too, dumbass!" He retorted. Suzuki smirked and shrugged, not looking from the card table.

"RINKU…! Wha' were you doin' in the woods?" Chuu called from the living room. Rinku walked over and poked his head out the doorway, looking at the drunken man sprawled out in the chair, remote control in hand, half-empty bottle of sake on the floor.

"My yo-yo came off of the string and I went to go get it…" He said.

"O, okay… Just makin' sure ye ain't doin' nothin'… bad." Chuu slurred. He hiccupped as he changed the channel once more.

Rinku jumped onto the arm of the chair. He sat there and looked at Chuu sweetly, trying to look as cute and childish as he could. Chuu glanced at him, eyebrow cocked, eyes glazed.

"Whay'dya want, kiddo?" He asked finally. Rinku grinned adorably, swinging his foot a little.

"Chuu, I'm gonna get a dog, okay? Okay! Thanks, see ya later!" Rinku exclaimed, and sprung from the chair before Chuu could register what the boy had said to him. Rinku ran back into the kitchen and opened the door again to leave, grabbing a rope from a drawer. Shishi looked at the little guy questioningly.

"Rinku, are you getting a… pet?" He asked.

"Yes, a dog I found! Be back soon!" He replied as he went to leave. Suzuki's eyes widened incredibly.

"RINKU, I'M ALLERGIC TO DOGS!" Suzuki cried as the child opened the door. Rinku shrugged.

"O well!" He countered. Chuu suddenly jumped from his spot in his chair as Rinku ran out the door snickering.

"RINKU!" Chuu screamed, running over to the back door. "NO! NO DOG! NO PET! RINKUUUUUUUUU!" He screamed out the door at Rinku's vanishing figure.

Rinku laughed and grinned. His very first pet!

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_Okay… So how do you like it? It's going to get funny… You'll see…! I'm basing this dog partially off of my Pap's dog, Nora. I hope you enjoy! I shall update soon! **DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW!** Thanksies, mina-san! Aishiteru!_


	2. Chapter II

_For a while now, I have been planning the wedding of me and my boyfriend, J. I really do love the boy, more than my own family; it's rather hard to see him as often as I'd like (which would be 24-7), because he lives an hour and a half away from me and such. But anyway. I've been planning our wedding, which we have both agreed on (we're going to share a flat during college, and then we're going to be wed after graduation), with a friend of mine. We, we being Lizzy and I, have it all planned out. I'm going to wear Yuna's, from Final Fantasy X, wedding dress from when she married Seymour Gueado. And John? Well. John won't be renting a one hundred dollar suit. O, no no no! He'll be cosplaying Gackt. So basically, it's to be Camui Yuna! Now that I think about it, I really doubt that Gackt would even LIKE Yuna. Her eyes aren't strong enough… o.o''' ((REVIEW!))_

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"…So what are you going to call it…?"

"I'm not sure yet… I think I wanna call him Scrappy… Or Frappy… Maybe Toughie… Or Ruff… Possibly Bob… I've thought of a lot of things! I don't know!"

"Well, you can't name it until you know if it's a boy or a girl, unless you want to use a simple unisexual name."

"I's a lad, Touya! …OW! Cut it out, ye mangy mutt!"

"Aaaachoo!"

Suzuki stomped up the stairs glumly, rubbing his nose with his hand. Shishiwakamaru's, Rinku's, and Touya's eyes followed him up the stairs, returning to the dog jumping high into the air after Jin. The wind master had strategically, after lifting the dog's leg up hastily, hopped high into the air, close to the ceiling, far out of harm's reach.

Shishi sat in the far corner of the room, on the back of Chuu's favourite chair; the fact he was currently sitting in Chuu's chair disgusted him terribly. Touya was standing by the bathroom door, leaning against the far wall, his eye locked on the dog. Rinku, on the other hand, sat in the middle of the room, placed comfortably on the floor with his legs crossed. He was the only one in the room who was close to the dog.

"…I don't like it…!" Shishi stated bluntly, knitting his brow to-gether.

"Don't hate him just because he likes me better than you, Shishi!" Rinku stated cheerfully, patting his hand on the ground to call the dog over to him. Shishi shot a fiery glare at the child, his hateful gaze then returning to the dog.

"JIN, NO!" Touya suddenly shouted. Everyone looked to Jin, who was drawing away his arm from a rapidly biting and snapping canine. Jin flew back from the dog, which was now determined to claim his hide. The dog jumped higher and higher, nearly nipping Jin's ankle. Rinku called it over more determinedly, reaching into his pocket and then taking out his fist and waving it around for the dog to come get it. Obviously, Rinku had nothing in his pockets anymore, but the dog didn't know this; simple trickery was all it was.

"C'mere, boy! C'mere!" Rinku clicked his tongue, beckoning over the raggedy mutt. The dog ran over jovially, a bounce in every step. Rinku rose to his feet, holding his fist high in the air. He waved it around somewhat as the dog danced on his hind legs below. The boy's eyes shot to Shishi, who glared in return, then to Touya, who simply stared back, not knowing what Rinku meant to imply. Jin hovered a bit closer to the pair, and as soon as he was within a meter, the dog landed and turned round, snapping and snarling, which sent Jin shooting back up to the ceiling.

"This thing… It's the devil in canine guise!" Shishi stated in awe, observing the dog from the lounge chair in the corner. Touya smiled slightly, uncrossing his arms and stepping forward.

"It would want a treat, would it not? Dogs like food." He proposed to Rinku, an eyebrow raised. Rinku looked at him, his fist still raised. The dog came back and sat under his arm, looking up longingly.

"He's not an 'it,' he's a 'he!' And I need someone to get him food 'coz he thinks I've got some in my hand! But I already gave all my candy to him!" Rinku waved his fist at Jin, telling the wind master to go to the kitchen and get something for the dog. Shishi straightened up on the back of the chair.

"What! You gave it---"

"Him!" Rinku corrected the samurai hastily, glowering at him. Shishi sighed.

"'Him.'" He restated. "You gave him all your candy?" The young samurai continued. Rinku grinned and nodded his head. "We buy that for you and you give it to a DOG? It was making off fine in the wild! Why is it here?" Shishi shouted. Rinku looked to the dog.

"Scruff!" He said playfully.

"Scruff?" Touya's voice popped up from the shadows once more.

"Scruff. It's his name now." Rinku responded proudly. "Scruff! FETCH, BOY!" Rinku threw his empty fist in Shishi's general direction, and, as he had predicted (and hoped for), Scruff went running. He bounded up onto the chair, the very one Shishiwakamaru sat in. Immediately, the dog latched its teeth into the samurai's dark blue Bon-Ton; Shishi cried out, yanking his out-of-style baggy trousers from the dog's strong grip and falling backwards behind the chair into the small space in which he would not be able to get out of. Scruff leaped onto the back of the chair where the man had been sitting and loomed over Shishiwakamaru, casting him into shadows. The dog barked madly, a deep, long, fearsome bark, and growling in between.

Rinku laughed throughout the scene, howling with laughter, until finally he laughed so hard that he became silent. Touya's eyes were as large as saucers, both pupil-less orbs fixed intently on the dog. Suddenly, the door to the kitchen pulled open, and out came Jin, a slice of bread in his hand. He observed the scene silently, looking from the dog, to the chair, to Touya, then Rinku.

"I miss things too much." Jin sighed and waved the bread at the dog. No reaction. Rinku jumped up and ran to the wind master, snatching the bread from hi hand. Trotting closer to the chair, Rinku waved the bread around, calling the dog's name; his voice was cracking as he called "Scruff" over and over again.

Scruff looked around, and finally laid his eyes on the food being offered to him. He sprung from the chair, and ran over to Rinku merrily, bouncing as he ran. The dog ripped the bread from the child's hand, his teeth snapping as the locked onto it; dropping the slice on the floor and then picking it up again, Scruff tossed it in his mouth noisily very briefly, and then practically inhaled it, as if he hadn't even chewed (which was very possible).

Suzuki poked his head around the corner from upstairs, looking down wearily at the group through puffy red eyes. He sneezed inwardly, holding his nose with his thumb and index finger.

"Rinku…? It's time to go to bed. It's ten o' clock." Suzuki said softly, but loud enough for the boy below to hear him. Rinku groaned, lowering his head; his eyes looked fondly, yet sadly, to Scruff, who was staring at Touya with disdain. Rinku stood up and walked a few steps, kneeling down and wrapping his arms around the dog's neck, drawing his attention back to his new friend.

"Can Scruff come?" Rinku pleaded, puckering out his bottom lip in a pathetic attempt to sway Suzuki over. Suzuki smiled lopsidedly, crossing his arms at the boy.

"…To be frank: Hell no. He's covered in fleas, Rinku. And God only knows what he would do at night. Scruff can sleep outside to-night, and to-morrow Shishi will help you give him a bath." Suzuki promised the boy, a warm smile on his face; Rinku beamed at Suzuki as he spoke, nodding his head in liking.

"WHAT! Why me? Do it yourself, you bastard!" Shishi cried; now suddenly back on the chair. They had lost interest in the samurai's troubles as soon as the dog had left him lone.

"Didja know that in Australia 'bastard' means 'friend?'" Jin said proudly, smiling from pointed ear to pointed ear. No one paid his comment any mind, ignoring the poor wind master temporarily. Suzuki stepped down the stairs further to get a look at the complaining swordsman. Rinku was smirking gleefully at the man.

"I can't, unless you want me to die; have I not mentioned that I'm ALLERGIC to dogs? If I have to wash one, I'll probably drop over dead!" Suzuki laughed wryly, sensing his friend's scornful glare.

"You probably won't, though, Suzuki. Your symptoms will only get worse." Touya said quietly. Suzuki shot him a stare under furrowed brow. His mouth lay slack and he grunted.

"Then I'll either sneeze myself into a coma, and I'll never wake up because no one will take me to the hospital, but instead keep the dog around me, OR my eyes will get so puffed up I'll become blind and run into something hazardous and die. How's that, know-it-all?" Suzuki scoffed, grinning smugly and turning up his nose away from the ice master. Touya chuckled to himself lowly.

"You always have to be difficult, don't you, Suzuki?" He mumbled in response.

"No. I always have to be right. So there!" Suzuki corrected the man's mistake. Rinku laughed, petting Scruff's chest with one hand and rubbing his ears with the other. "Come on, Rinku. Time for bed. Tell the dog good night, and Jin can put him outside." Jin stood up straight in the air.

"There's no way in 'ell I'm even gettin' near tha' dog again! It HATES me!" Jin objected, pointing his index finger at the dog. Suzuki cocked an eyebrow, annoyed.

"Shishiwakamaru, then." He said shortly. Shishi scoffed at him.

"No. No. And no. It hates me, too." The samurai stood from the chair and walked into the bathroom without anther word. Everyone else's glance turned to Touya, whom still leant against the wall, save Scruff, who was sitting there being loved on by Rinku, panting happily. The ice master sighed and pushed himself from the wall walking over towards Scruff. Rinku let go of the dog, patted him on the head fondly, and ran up the stairs, meeting Suzuki at his side. Jin had mysteriously disappeared, which wasn't unusual, and was so far the opposite that it was actually expected. Touya grabbed the dog by the scruff of his neck and yanked him towards the front door, which he opened with his free hand. He stepped out briefly to fill the bowl that had been set out there earlier with water from the hose.

"Good night, Rinku." Suzuki said as the child departed for his room.

"'Night!" He pulled the door open, shutting it with his foot, and jumped into his bed. The demon child wiggled his way under the covers, giving a thought to Chuu, whom he hoped was having fun at the pub (it being Friday night), and gave another to Scruff, to whom he hoped would fare well outside for the night. The boy reached over and flicked off the lamp on his nightstand, turning onto his side and sighing exhaustedly. He drifted into a deep sleep, not to be woken by anything; not even to be awakened by the excruciatingly loud cry of pain from the front porch, which to everyone else in the house sounded remarkably like Touya.

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_**REVIEW!**_


	3. Chapter III

_Sorry, sorry, sorry! I've been EXTREMELY uninspired! I've had the worst case of writer's block (and artist's block, too) I've ever experienced. I'm actually not feeling humorous at all. (Thank the Lord for Duran Duran and Tears For Fears.) With my apologies bidden, and my news said, I shall commence with the story. Enjoy!_

Snapping and snarling, Scruff was thrown into a tub of hot, soapy water; the tub was spilling over with soap suds. Rinku stood with a hose, waving it around like a mad man. The black shorts he wore were the darkest shade you could ever see, due to the water; you could see through his soaking white tank-top. And, of course, his nearly black hair (due, once again, to water) drooped pathetically into his eyes. He was wetter than an Olympic swimmer, and all he'd done was turn on the garden hose.

Shishiwakamaru sat, quite some feet away, in silence, watching contentedly. He wore a pair of blue kapris (but Rinku had already got him, so they were black now) and a large white T-shirt, which you could now see through, as well. His hair was down and soaking wet, all wax and gel long gone from it. Shishiwaka was very content with his role in washing the newly adopted dog—sit and watch quietly. Perfect.

"Having fun, Rinku? Looks like Scruff is having a blast," Shishi jeered. Rinku glared at him, letting go off the dog briefly, and showed him a very lovely hand motion. Which wasn't such a bright idea.

"SCRUFF! COME BACK!"

Rinku lunged after the wet dog, but only landed into the tub. The dog bounded towards the house once more, focused on his prey. Shishi drew up is legs, hoping the dog could not get up on the engawa to get him. The kitchen door was open. It was 9:30 a.m., just time for Jin's 'breakfast' (which varied from Pop-Tarts to Froot Loops to cookies to candy to rice to bread to toast to pizza, depending on what he saw first). The dog left a very wet and soapy trail behind him as he ran into the house, headed for the open refrigerator. But Scruff wasn't looking for some free food, as most dogs would be. Scruff was malicious. Scruff was malign. Scruff was—dare I say it—evil.

Two ninjas down. Blood stained Jin's white pant-leg. He tore his leg from the dog's grip, a fresh gash on his calf. Well, four or five gashes, seeing as it was a bite, not a cut. He glowered at the dog, who was jumping up and down to get to him, still snapping and snarling and barking and growling. (Scruff even went as far as to gurgle at the man.) Jin held his bleeding leg, floating far up near the ceiling, and cursed violently.

Rinku ran into the kitchen. But by the time he got in, he'd missed the entire ordeal, and Scruff looked like a complete innocent. The dog was on his hind legs, his front on the bottom shelf, and raiding the refrigerator, chomping down on leftover pizza. Jin still cussed just as violently as he bled, and held his wound tightly, still casting dirty looks at the dog. Just getting some free food? Bull shit.

Rinku knelt down and wrapped his arm around the dog's neck. It snapped briefly, but then sat quietly, panting, tongue wagging. Shishiwakamaru entered the room sheepishly, making sure to keep the door behind him open. His eyes widened, looking at the ninja high up by the ceiling. Jin cussed again.

"What happened?" Shishiwakamaru's voice was quiet, but steady. It was genuine curiosity; but it lacked any possible empathy or even sympathy.

"The feckin' dog feckin' came up and ripped me feckin' leg off!" Jin hollered.

"Well, that's obviously a lie, Jin, seeing as it's still there," Rinku pointed out defiantly, grip round Scruff's chest tightening.

"Look at it! Look at this! You want me to count the places where he broke the skin? The dog's a feckin' maniac!"

"Don't call my dog a maniac, you frickin' hypocrite!" Rinku shouted.

"I ain't no feckin' hypocrite! The dog's feckin' evil; it's Satan's feckin' spawn! I was mindin' my own business and then CHOMP!"

"Sure! I bet you were provoking him, you windward idiot!"

"I was not! I was getting food! I'll show ye who's a idiot, though, you little brat!"

"I'm not afraid of you!"

"Ye damn well should be, then, 'cause if I can't walk tomorrow—"

"**ENOUGH.**"

Chuu stood in the doorway, arms crossed over his broad chest. He stared at the three (or the four) through furrowed brows, the corners of his mouth drooping; the lines beneath the rugged hair of his face deepened with his scowl of authority he didn't have. Shishiwakamaru drew back a little, never having seen such a face on the man. The thought raced through his mind, and it almost truthfully froze the blood coursing through his veins, blew his mind, maybe even frightened him: _"He must be sober." _And it must have been the apocalypse.

"What's goin' on 'ere, now?" Chuu's voice was still the same. Thank goodness. No need to worry about fireballs and acid raining from the sky, or the ground collapsing beneath your very feet. What a relief.

"Jin made Scruff bite him and now—"

"Rinku's damned dog tried to steal me leg—"

"They were arguing like mad and—"

"SHUT YER BLOODY TRAPS!" Chuu screamed. The three shushed. "Jin, go."

"Awright. I was gonna break me fast, looking for food in the fridge, right? I was standin' there with the door open, and the back door was open, too. Rinku and Shishi were outside washin' the anti-Christ—I mean washing the dog, and Rinku tells it to come get me, right? Then it runs in here, all wet an' soapy, and chomps down on m'leg just 'cause!" Jin let go of his calve, sticking his leg out for observation. "Have a look!"

Chuu glanced at Jin's leg, then to the dog, and finally to Rinku. They nodded at each other.

"I was washing Scruff, and Shishiwakamaru was being lazy; I accidentally let go of him, and he got away. Jin was teasing him with food and so Scruff bit 'im!"

"NOT WHAT 'APPENED, MUNCHIN!"

"IT WAS, TOO!"

"QUIET!" Chuu's voice bellowed throughout the room.

"What happened was this. I was supervising Rinku and watching him wash the dog. He accidentally let go of the dog, like he said. Jin was in the kitchen raiding the fridge for breakfast, like he said. The door was open, the dog ran in, and for some unknown reason decided to bite Jin's leg." Shishiwakamaru stepped forward, looking superior.

Chuu shook his head exhaustedly; walking over to the refrigerator, he pushed Rinku and Scruff out of the way gently with his foot, reaching in a pulling out a half-eaten roast beef sandwich on a plate. He proceeded to walk away, everyone's gaze following him. After a second, Shishiwaka smirked at the two boys in front of him.

"If I were the fureakdog… I'd bite Jin, too," he said calmly, a hint of humour in his tones as he made his way to the living room. It was more of a run than a walk, and the blue-haired samurai easily dodged Jin's attempt to punch his head off. The boy exited the room snickering, dashing up to his bedroom. To do Shishi-things.

Jin glared at Rinku and his dog and floated sullenly in Shishi's wake, then joining Touya on the couch. Rinku pulled the mutt back outside to finish washing him.

"'Ey, Touya. Ye like the dog?" Jin inquired after a while to the reading Touya. The ice Shinobi's eyes darted to him for a second, then returning to the book, to finish the sentence. He dogeared his page in 'Shogun', and set it aside, purposely exposing his bandaged hand to the wind master.

"I love it like my own," he said bitterly, sarcasm dripping from his tongue. Jin chuckled, sticking out his wounded leg for Touya to see. He rolled up the blood-soaked pant leg, inspecting the numerous bites and gashes. The redhead grimaced.

Touya's eyes were wide at Jin's wounds, then looked to his own. He cleared his throat.

"The dog's a crazy li'l bugger, ain't 'e, Toy! Lookit what 'e did ta meh!"

"That's… rather gruesome. I'll dress those for you. Last night, when I was putting him on the porch, do you know what he did to me?" Touya stuck his hand out, blood spots in the middle on both sides. "He bit me. Straight through my hand. I literally felt teeth hit bone."

Jin gasped, shaking his head. He bolted up into the air, keeping his hurt leg cocked. He took Touya's free hand and forced the demon up and dragged him along to the bathroom. Touya'd always been better at dressing wounds than Jin.

Outside, on the other hand, Rinku was drying a clean and happy Scruff off with a towel. Once dried for the most part by the warm towel, the dog shook all over, remaining drops of soapy water flying in every direction. Rinku laughed as they hit him, shielding his face slightly with his hands.

"Scruff," he whined sweetly in a singsong voice. The boy leant down and hugged the dog happily to him, Scruff in return wagging his tail and licking Rinku excitedly in his face.

From above, a figure stood in the window, watching the goings-ons below. Rinku and Scruff ran about the yard and the rock garden, chasing each other, Scruff barking happily and Rinku laughing and screaming giddily from time to time. They were playing together. (Surely, the evil one—the thing entitled 'Scruff'—was putting on an act.)

The figure sniffed his congested nose, pulling another tissue from the box of Kleenex in his hands and blew it promptly, stepping away from the window to his bed. Suzuki resolved to lie down again, for his head was rather sore. He sat the box on the nightstand, and pulled his polka-dot pajama-pants-covered legs up, and under the rainbow candystriped bed sheets, turning on his side and drifting into a allergy-infected, congested and sore-headed, sullen sleep.

_And they called it Scruff._

_Well. Here it is. Chapter three. I've actually taken a really long time to write this. Months, for sure. I wrote from the roast beef sammich to the end listening to An Café アンティック-珈琲店-. Very good band. Suits me. Anyway. I've had a total Suzuki obsession and I'm practically a different person. But not! Whoa! Anywho. I'm working more on romance and serious things. I have plans for the summer. I'll be releasing a plethora of SuzukixShishiwakamaru song-fics soon, too, if anyone is interested. Keep an eye out for 'Psychobabble,' which will be coming out soon. Love you all! Thanks for reading! (Please review. I get so excited when I get reviews.)_


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